My Favourite Quotes

In need of some inspiration, here are some of my favourite quotes and sayings.

'Remember that guy that gave up? Neither does anyone else' 

This quote is awesome because it sums up life in general for me, if you ever give up in whatever you're doing, then you have failed. What are you going to be remembered for? What are your kids going to know about you? 

The General Message: Never give up

'If you’re absent during my struggle, don’t expect to be present during my success' 

This quote is all about remembering those that have helped you get to where you are and not being that person who hangs out with the fake people in their life who feed off of the success.

The General Message: Don't forget your true friends

'Who cares?' 

This saying is quite important for my life, it is a saying in my life, probably not everyone else's but I feel it should be. It is all about not caring about what people, that's only aim is to bring you down, have to say. Any time someone says something mean or hurtful to you about something you have done, just say this and walk away.

The General Message: Don't listen to negativity

'Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can't Lose'

This quote is from my favourite TV show of all time, Friday Night Lights. This quote means the most to me out of every quote, because this is my life mantra. It means so much that I have it tattooed on my arm. The clear eyes refers to not seeing obstacles and not being distracted, the full hearts means give everything you've got and the last part is self explanatory.

The General Message: Be focused, give your all and you will succeed

Top 5 (18/12/2013)

Week beginning: 18/12/2013 (UK Date)

This post will be up for two weeks as next Wednesday is Christmas and I won't be posting. I will be back on the 1st with the top 5, however this time it will be the top 5 of 2013.

5: All Hail Murray

Andy Murray is officially the face of UK sport in 2013, well according to the BBC Sports Personality Of The Year Awards. Andy picked up the most prestigious  award of the night, won by so many British greats before him. Other contenders were Leigh Halfpenny for his triumphant performance down under on the British and Irish Lions Tour. There was Ian Bell for his three centuries against the Aussies in the Ashes. Justin Rose, who beat Jason Day, an Aussie, to the U.S open in golf. Sir Ben Ainslie, who helped to beat New Zealand (basically Aussies), in the America's cup. So what we can learn from this is that Britain beats Australia a lot.

4: Desolation Of Smaug

I only recently became a fan of the Lord of The Ring films, and this week will be moving on to the Hobbit films, which ties in nicely with my next choice, The Desolation of Smaug. This is the second in the Hobbit trilogy and sees the return of my favourite character, Legolas. The film opened to the public on the thirteenth of December, eleven days after the premiere in Los Angeles. Another thing about this film that I love is the song for it, sung by British musician Ed Sheeran. The song is lovely and so fitting for a film about destruction because of the sombre feel to it.




3: Beyonce Random Album

On the thirteenth, the Queen of the music industry, unexpectedly dropped a new album upon us entitled Beyonce. The album features fourteen songs and get this, seventeen videos. The surprise album has already had two singles released and no doubt will be hits. She has reportedly been working on this album all year in secret, only telling a select few. Of course, hubby Jay-Z and friend Kanye West make appearances on the album. The album celebrates a 'Beyonce Philosophy' that she can do what the hell she wants.

2: Christmas
The festive season is here, so everyone can put their trees up, blast the Christmas songs, eat loads of sweets without someone telling them off, and children around the world have sleepless nights in anticipation for the arrival of Santa Claus and their long awaited presents. I love this season as it is joyous and everyone comes together to celebrate and be thankful.

1: Nelson Mandela
I could talk forever about this man and what a legend he is and will always be. On December the 5th, the world lost a legend and this week, he was finally put to rest and the memorials of a lifetime began. A statue has been revealed in Pretoria and will forever be a reminder of the great man that was Nelson Mandela. Words are not enough for this man and mine especially would not do him justice, so I will just say Rest In Peace Nelson Mandela.

There's Only One Place That Calls Me One Of Their Own!

"Who says you can't go home

There's only one place they call me one of their own

Just a hometown boy, born a rolling stone, who says you can't go home

Who says you can't go back, been all around the world and as a matter of fact

There's only one place left I want to go, who says you can't go home"

I have been home a week now and then this song came on my iPhone. For those of you who do not know the song, it is Who Says You Can't Go Home by Bon Jovi. This song relates to me a lot because when in Salford, everyone was saying to me that Salford is my new home, however I never used the word home about my flat, I would refer to it as 'the flat'. The line 'There's only one place they call me one of their own' really means a lot, because as much as I like living elsewhere, there will always only be one place which is truly home. When I was home all the time, I hated it, I always felt like I was trapped and everything was so predictable, so as soon as I got the opportunity to leave I ran as fast as possible as soon as I could, however looking back at it, it wasn't that bad. Sure, it had its downfalls, but I felt safe there, I knew the people, I knew the secrets and it was comforting and as soon as I was on my way home, I realised the town wasn't trapping me, it was giving me an escape from the real world, so that when I was released into the big world, I had a security, one place where I could trust.

So my questions today are: Do you like your hometown? Do you live there? Would/do you miss it?

Dream Update

Seeing as though this blog is all about me chasing my dream and all my thoughts and views along the way, I thought it would be a pretty good idea to tell you all the status of my dream.

Well, at the moment, I am currently studying Performance Media at the University of Salford, near Manchester. This course teaches me all about the industry of film, TV and radio acting, as well as the behind the scenes things, such as editing. This is very helpful for me because I am a stage actor and if I want to break into the film industry I need to gain a whole load of experience so that I know what to expect and don't look a fool in front f professionals. I am also expanding my options by still working for the Riverhead Producers, a group that I was the first member. The aim of the Riverhead Producers are to get young people involved with my local theatre by putting on shows, whether it be music, theatre, comedy or art events. We are currently putting on an improv comedy night, of which I am going to present. I have stated earlier and in another post that I currently live in Salford, which is near Manchester, the new home of the BBC. The University of Salford has great connections with many major companies in the industry and regularly has people come in and do workshops; this means that I can gain valuable contacts during my three year stay there, even though I will probably move to Manchester permanently after uni. I will only be 20 when I get my bachelors degree so I will have plenty of time to break the industry.

My questions today I want you to think about are: What are your dreams? How do you intend to achieve them? When do you intend to achieve them? What do they mean to you?  

A Time For Reflection And Change

As this year comes to a close in a few weeks, it is the time of year to celebrate the year and look back on all we did right and all the things we wish we could change. However as the clock strikes midnight and pushes us into a new year, we forget all that is behind us and look forward to another year of life and we also make resolutions that we wish to complete so that we feel we have bettered ourselves.

Looking back on this year for me personally is quite a proud moment because of all I have achieved; I took my A Levels and came out with great results which gained me a place doing Performance Media at Salford University. I also have done a lot of performing, including what I feel to be my best two performances to date; Anthony Hope in Sweeney Todd and as Sonny LaTierri in Grease the Musical. Grease was a major highlight for me because I am not the most talented musically or dance wise and to be able to pull of a principle role in a musical, with great feedback, was a massive achievement in my life. I also cemented a lot of friendships during the rehearsal period as well as making new friends for life. I have also moved out my home into a flat, which for me was quite big, as I had never used a washing machine or iron before.

Of course the year has not been all achievements, there have been downfalls of mine. I have been in love and fallen out of love, had a slight addiction to alcohol, of which has now been conquered, I have had injuries, lost best friends, been a jerk, and had a lot of trouble with money, but I choose to not dwell on those, as all have made me the man I am today, who is someone I am proud to be and is someone I hope will make all those around me proud.

I will post in a few weeks about my new year resolutions. So my questions today are: What has this year meant to you? Have you learnt from these experiences? Were they worth it? 

My New-found Sobriety

Most people that know me know that I like a drink more than anyone on the earth. I earned the nickname 'Alcoholic', or at least I called a nickname to escape the reality that maybe, just maybe, I actually was that very thing. Once I got to university, the drinking escalated to the point where I was drinking everyday and without reason. I wasn't celebrating, I wasn't forgetting, I wasn't consoling myself, I wasn't having fun, but yet still I persevered with drinking as a regular daily occurrence. One day I was at a flat party in Salford and I had 6 beers with me; the plan was to drink all them and then get wasted on whatever I could find, but something that night clicked in my mind and I thought to myself 'Why do I need to drink, I'm happy and drink makes me the opposite.' So I went the rest of that night without drinking a single thing, then I did the same the next night and, to be honest, I was the happiest I could ever recollect. This made me make the life altering decision to quit drink all together. I can't say I won't drink ever again, it's probably an inevitability, but for now I want to enjoy life to it's fullest so that when I do have a drink, I know when to stop and know that I don't need to have a drink and it's a choice.

I'll leave you on a question. Is there anything you do that you have no reason for doing and that your life would be better off without? If there is, make the change and reap the benefits. 

Ho Ho Holidays!

It's that time of year when everyone wishes for snow and asks their loved ones for presents. It's the time of year when you have to suffer awkward conversations with family members you see only at this time of year. It is also the time of year, where everyone stops the arguing and just enjoys themselves and is grateful for all they have. Of course not everyone celebrates Christmas, but then again you probably won't be interested in this if you didn't.

So I digress, Christmas is one of the few times of the year of which the whole family is together and we all celebrate with one another. I personally love this holiday, not only because we get gifts, but because everyone seems more cheerful. People stop worrying about the small things and embrace each other more openly. Of course, I love the music, the decorations, and the food as well, but the happiness is the thing that gets me the most. Then I start to wonder, why aren't we always this happy, what is so special about this day, that makes the majority of the world stop for a moment and just enjoy life. I mean in World War One, it stopped the war for an entire day.

So could it be because of the birth of Christ, one part of the holy trinity, which brought hope to millions of people. It could be, Jesus in my mind is synonymous with hope and belief in the goodness of mankind. However, most of the people that celebrate Christmas aren't actually religious, they just know the tradition of the festive tradition. So why are we all happy on one day? It's because, on this particular day, there is a magical feeling, which just makes you not want to fight and makes you just relax and enjoy life. This one day, restores faith in humanity, because we think not of ourselves, but of others around us.

So to one and all, have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!